“I guess I was a little reluctant…he wasn’t my prince charming, but my mom wanted me to marry him, so I could be taken care of.”

“So you married him for her? Do women still do that these days?”

“I did. Not a wise decision, but I’ve always wanted to please my mom and not been too successful at it.”

“So what happened with Brad?”

“The first few years were pretty good. Brad gave me an art studio and I spent a lot of time painting and drawing…maybe too much time…”

“What do you mean?”

“Brad was into art. He worked hard to make me famous, but once he did, the excitement wore off for him. Brad always needed a new challenge. After a while, he found that challenge in other…uh…activities.”

“Oh, I see. Do you consider his extra activities your fault then because you spent so much time painting?”

“Not really. A man can find hobbies other than cheating on his wife to fill spare time.”

“Of course he can! *pats Sunny’s arm* So Brad was cheating on you?”

*she looks down at the floor, color creeps into her cheeks*

She nods.

“Seems to me with a beautiful wife like you at home, he’d have a hard time finding someone better.”

“It wasn’t that. The thrill of the chase, always the thrill of the chase, even with me. Brad likes to win and a business deal that doesn’t work out or a woman he can’t have become obsessions with him.”

“How did you find out?”

“Brad hid it well, always had a cover story and a friend who would lie for him, so it took me a long time to find out…years in fact. But when I did, I saw it was happening more and more and he was getting careless, earrings in the car, an embarrassed chauffeur trying to lie for him…”

“Did he break your heart?”

She nodded.

“Why didn’t you leave him sooner?”

“I had nowhere to go. I have no family and no money of my own.”

“Did you confront him?”

“Several times, but he denied everything.”

“Did you have evidence?”

“Nothing I could use. But he knew I knew, so he stopped for a little while then started up again but became even more cautious.”

“It must have been lonely for you…”

“It was. We lived in a big…beautiful…house. The house felt like a prison after a while. Then when he sent his friend over to proposition me…”

“He sent a friend to seduce you?”

She nodded.

“Stan, Stan Cauley.”

“What did you do?”

“I threw him out of the house. Then I knew I had to get out.”

“You left right after that?”

“I did. Immediately. I ran away.”

“But you have found happiness now, haven’t you?”

“I’m happier than I have ever been…with the right man and time to paint…and of course, my pug, Trixie!” *pug jumps in lap, licks face*

“What a cute dog! Great name, Trixie.”

“Thank you.”

“We’re out of time. I want to thank artist, Sunny Davis, for this interview. I wish you all the happiness in the world.”

“Thank you.”

Six Sentence Sunday snippet:

Mike put his large hand with long slender fingers over
Sunny’s on the table and rubbed his thumb over the white mark
where her wedding ring used to be.
“Are you married?” he asked, glancing at her finger then
looking in her eyes.
“Not anymore,” she lied, looking away from him.
“Looks pretty recent,” he probed, fingering the whiteness of
the mark.
She nodded.
“I suppose that’s another reason why you are here,” he stated.
“You could say that,” she admitted feeling her heartbeat
quicken at the thought of the truth coming out.

If you missed earlier snippets from "Six Sentence Sunday" scroll down to the archive section on the right where you will find earlier snippets that will catch you up on Sunny and Mike's past.